Sunday, December 06, 2020 - Second Sunday of Advent - Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 1, 1-8 - Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths: every living being will see the salvation of God.

Dear Christians, this is what Jesus said to his disciples when he returned to the Father: "I am going to prepare a place for you. When I have gone away to prepare a place for you, I will return and bring you to me. And when Thomas replied that they did not know the way, He answered: "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life". We often hear it when someone leaves this life. It is Christ who prepares a place for us to welcome us when we leave this life, and He is the way to get there.

But in this Gospel it is quite the opposite, it is Christ himself who wants to dwell with us, to descend into us, so we must prepare a place for him in our hearts and prepare his way. This is called hospitality. So for St. John the Baptist, in this Gospel, it is by receiving the baptism of conversion that God's place in us is formed. The preparation of today's Christian should be no different: through conversion and tears of repentance, according to St. Ambrose, to be worthy of receiving Jesus. So let us prepare the way of the Lord, let us make his paths straight. This must alert our conscience. It is a call for us to make the decision to change our lives and to leave the wrong path. That is what conversion is. May our heart, in order to receive the Savior, not be an impassable bumpy road.